Kingsmill Marriott brawl, shooting may have started at 16th birthday party

James City

May 04, 2010|By By Dan Parsons | 247-7840

JAMES CITY — A brawl during which shots were fired outside the Williamsburg Marriott on Friday may have started at a 16th birthday party being held at the Kingsmill hotel, according to police.

Shortly after 11 p.m., James City County police were called to the hotel, 50 Kingsmill Road, just off Route 60 near Busch Gardens, for a call of multiple fights in progress and reports of shots fired.

When officers arrived, they saw between 75 and 100 people running out of the hotel and multiple fights going on in the parking lot, said Maj. Steve Rubino, a James City police spokesman. The officers also heard shots fired outside the hotel, Rubino said.

As police broke up fights and dispersed the crowd outside, several fights were also going on inside the hotel lobby and one of the hotel's ballrooms, which had been rented for a birthday party for a 16-year-old, Rubino said. Another 75 to 100 people were still inside the hotel when police arrived.

Investigators did not find any gunshot victims at the scene, and no local hospitals have reported gunshot wounds, Rubino said. It is unclear whether the shots were fired at the crowd or into the air to break up fights.

No serious injuries were reported as a result of the fights, and no substantial damage to the hotel was reported.

Police recovered 11 shell casings fired from a semi-automatic handgun, but found no weapons at the scene, Rubino said. On Saturday morning, a hotel guest reported that his vehicle had been damaged. Police determined it had been struck by one of the bullets, Rubino said.

No arrests have been made, and the incident remains under investigation.